Do You Think the Guantanamo Prisoners Should Be Released?

Detainees praying in Camp 6 of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. (Image via.)

There aren’t many positive stories to have emerged out of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. Supporters believe it’s the safest place to hold terrorists before they’re put on trial, opponents argue that torturing people, driving inmates to suicide and holding hundreds indefinitely without any real evidence is basically the definition of “human rights abuse”. Which is ironic considering the people in charge of the camp seem very keen to carry on projecting themselves as the good guys.   

Currently, over half of the camp’s inmates are on hunger strike in protest against their treatment, including Shaker Aamer, a British man who was cleared for release in 2007 due to insufficient evidence but is still being held in Guantanamo six years later. Now that George W Bush is a painter and the War on Terror has become a parody of itself, should Guantanamo’s prisoners be released or trialled at a legitimate prison where they won’t be beaten and have their religious texts flushed down the toilet? Or will they all do a Said al-Shihri and get straight back on the terror horse?

I wasn’t sure, so I asked a bunch of strangers if they think that Guantanamo’s prisoners should be released.

Adam: I’m not informed enough about the issue to make a concrete opinion, but – in my view – Obama’s making steps to close it down completely now and I’m really behind that decision.

VICE: What do you think about Shaker Aamer, who was meant to be released in 2007?
That’s a blatant disregard for his human rights. It’s deplorable and I don’t think there’s any circumstances in which that’s justified. Presumably no case has been formed against him.

Yep, there’s no evidence against him.
That’s awful.

Barnabe: They should be released, of course.

Why?
Well, the majority of them have been arrested unfairly, for a start.

What do you think about them going on hunger strike?
They’re totally right – they’re trying to prove their point and good luck to them.

Are you worried about terrorist activities?
Did they actually belong to any of those groups in the first place?

Yeah, a couple of them have confessed to belonging to terrorist groups.
We can’t prove anything, that’s my belief.

Fair enough.

Lucie: I suppose the camp should be closed, but whether they should be released? No, I don’t think they should. They shouldn’t be there, they should be trialled.

Even if some of them are members of terrorist organisations?
It’s not very clear, so I definitely think they should be left where they are. I don’t know if they should be immediately released or not.

How about the guys going on hunger strike?
It’s a cry for attention. The way they’re left in that state is not OK, and for them to get to the state of having to do a hunger strike is terrible. The worst for them is not knowing and having no hope.

Derek: Where would they be released?

To another prison, I assume.
They should just send them back to where they’re from.

Even if they’re a part of a terrorist organisation?
Why not? See if it happens again. If you’ve done the crime, do the time, so why not try and see if it all works? I’m sure that’ll fuck everything up, right?

I imagine it probably would, yeah. What do you think about the hunger strike?
That’s totally understandable, but I’m not too sure a hunger strike is the best way to go about getting people’s attention.

What’s a better way?
I don’t think anything. I don’t really know much about it, so I’m not sure there’s anything they can do to get attention. They can keep trying and trying, but they’re just going to fail, man.

:(

Dani: I think they should be released.

Why?
Because torture is no way to solve problems. There are so many theories about that; if you force someone into an extreme situation of pain, they’re going to respond however you want them to. It’s not effective problem solving for world affairs.

What if they’re a part of a terrorist organisation? Does that worry you?
“Terrorism” is a subjective term. I think terrorism is an ideological war rather than a physical thing. A lot of people can also be termed liberation warriors.

True. What do you think about the hunger strike?
I mean, I’m not for anorexia in any kind of manifestation. Is it a peaceful means of protest? Maybe. But destruction of the body, which is all we have at the end of the day, might be more detrimental to their cause.

Previously – Would You Pleasure Yourself Orally If You Were Flexible Enough?